Rebel group delegation to arrive in Sudan

A high-level delegation of the Sudan Revolutionary Front (SRF) rebel alliance will arrive in Sudan from Juba over the weekend.

The delegation will be headed by Yasir Arman, Secretary General of the Sudan People Liberation Movement-North faction in Blue Nile state under the leadership of Malik Agar (SPLM-N Agar), deputy Nimir Abdelrahman, rapporteur Mutasim Saleh, spokesmen Ibrahim Zariba, and five other rebel leaders.

After negotiations that lasted almost a year, member groups of the SRF signed a comprehensive peace agreement in initials with the Sudanese government in the South Sudanese capital Juba on August 31.

Apart from the SPLM-N Agar, the SRF consists of five Darfur armed opposition groups: the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM), the Sudan Liberation Movement faction under the leadership of Minni Minawi (SLM-MM), the SLM-Transitional Council, the Sudan Liberation Forces Group, and the Sudanese Alliance – which includes 15 smaller rebel factions.

Yesterday, the spokesperson for the delegation gave a press statement. He said that the delegation will work to transfer the ownership of the Juba Peace Agreement to the Sudanese people, and in particular war victims.

“The delegation will work to mobilise official and popular support for the peace agreement, and to strengthen partnership with the Forces for Freedom and Change,” he stated. “To implement the peace agreement on the ground, a transitional bloc will be built with a broad array of people, to secure the aims of the revolution and make the transitional period successful.”

Holdout rebels

The peace agreement signed yesterday in the South Sudanese capital of Juba did not include the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-North faction under the leadership of Abdelaziz El Hilu (SPLM-N El Hilu) in South Kordofan and parts of Blue Nile state, and the mainstream Sudan Liberation Movement in Darfur, led by Abdelwahid El Nur (SLM-AW).

In speeches after the signing of the peace accord, Chairman of the Sovereign Council Lt Gen Abdelfattah El Burhan, Prime Minister Abdallah Hamdok, and South Sudan President Salva Kiir, all called on El Hilu and El Nur to join the peace negotiations.

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